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Parents of sick and dying children warily applauded a judge’s landmark ruling yesterday that the public must now be informed how much of their donated dollar is being scooped up and pocketed by fundraisers.

In his ruling, Superior Court Justice John McIsaac said it’s a crime for fundraisers to keep the percentage of commissions they take a secret. The judge found professional fundraiser Adam Gour, of North Bay, guilty of defrauding the public after he collected almost a half million dollars on behalf of sick children across Ontario – because he never told the donators that almost 99 percent of the of the cash went to secret commissions, bonuses and Gour’s own bank account.

“I am satisfied that this silence or failure to disclose is misleading ….and amounts to a fraud,” said the judge. However the judge made it clear that it is not a crime to keep the money - “even if it’s 95 percent – so long as you give the contributor a choice.”

The ruling came after a two-week trial where the court heard Gour skulked around on the Internet, hunting for families of sick and dying children, then would take their photographs from local newspapers to create posters and set them up at big box stores to fundraise for the child, often without the families even knowing about it. Gour’s team of fundraisers, who operated under the name of Kare for Kids, or Northern Children’s Foundation, were told to lie and claim they are volunteers – even though they were hauling in up to $650 each in cash per weekend plus hotel and food expenses.

Gour and his team, including a blind man with his seeing-eye dog, were arrested after they set up camp in Alliston and the outraged family of little Jaida Cumberland were shocked when they saw her posters by cashboxes in November 2009.

“It was a disgusting thing to do – it was creepy,” said Jaida’s mom, Helen Sykes, outside of court after the ruling. She and her husband had just got off the plane after taking their dying daughter to Disney Land with the Children’s Wish Foundation when they saw the posters of their daughter. Jaida, 7, died at Sick Kids last year after a life-long struggle with a rare illness.

“She was a beautiful little girl and Adam Gour to used her as a pawn to tug at the heartstrings of the public, then keep all of the money. That should be a crime.” However she and her husband applauded the judge for ruling that the public must at least be informed.

“It’s a great day for the people of Ontario,” said Sykes. “No more secrets. People only have so many dollars they can afford to donate, and they have the right to know where it’s going.”

Julliet Wood of North Bay, who is fighting breast cancer and whose son fought a long illness with brain tumors, was upset that the judge did not rule that it was a crime when Gour kept thousands of dollars raised for her son who was being treated at Sick Kids.

“I don’t get that – how can that not be a crime?” said Wood. “However, at least he was convicted of something and at least the public is now going to know about these scams – we hope this ruling will be enforced.”